Selective dual flow flush valves



J. J. FILLIUNG 2,738,946

SELECTIVE DUAL FLOW FLUSH VALVES March 20, 1956 Filed Oct. 51, 1952 PUSH FOR LONG FLUSH PULL FOR INVENTOR. JACQUES J. FILL/0N6.

ATTORNEYS.

United States Patent Ofi ice 2,738,946 Patented Mar. 20, 1956 SELECIIV E DUAL FLOW FLUSH VALVES Jacques J. Filliung, Chicago, Ill., assignor to Sloan Valve Company, Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Illinois Application October 31, 1952, Serial No. 318,049

7 Claims. (Cl. 251-35) This invention relates in general to flush valves for water closets and other plumbing fixtures and has for its object to provide a new and improved flush valve for this purpose.

The principal object of the invention is to provide a new and improved flush valve which will deliver different quantities of water selectively at the will of the user.

A further object is to design a new and improved flush valve for water closets having an operating handle which the user can selectively operate in one manner to control the flush valve to discharge a relatively large volume of water and in another manner to discharge a smaller volume of water into the fixture.

Another object is to provide means whereby a flush valve of standard construction can be readily converted to one in which either of two flushing actions can be selectively performed by merely substituting a special handle operating arrangement for the regular handle operator.

A still further object of the invention is to devise a flush valve handle operating arrangement in which no springs are required to restore the handle mechanism and in which the packing means for preventing leakage through the handle is eliminated.

Flush valves are usually provided with an adjusting screw and other means for regulating the volume of water discharged by the valve. This adjustment usually is made at the time the flush valve is installed to provide the proper flush for the fixture and is not changed subsequently. There are many occasions, however, when the full volume of water discharged by the flush valve is not necessary or desirable, as for example when the closet bowl is being used for urinating purposes. It is accordingly an object of this invention to arrange the'flush valve so that the user can selectively operate the same to provide either a small flush or a regular relatively large one, depending upon the use to which the fixture is being put. As a result of such selective operation of the flush valve, considerable economy in the consumption of water is effected and in communities where there is a scarcity of water, this is an important factor.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will become more apparent from the following description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings in which a preferred embodiment and a modification of the invention is illustrated. In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a cross-sectional elevation of a flush valve showing the invention applied thereto;

Fig. 2 shows a cross-sectional view of a portion of the flush valve of the invention shown in one of its operated positions;

Fig. 3 is a front view of the operating button only;

Fig. 4 shows a partial cross-section of a modified form of the invention;

Fig. 5 is a top view showing the use of the invention on a water closet; and

Fig. 6 shows an enlarged cross-sectional view of the bypass arrangement.

In the drawings, for the purposes of illustration, there is shown a piston type flush valve of well known construction, although the invention is equally applicable for use with a diaphragm type of flush valve. The flush valve shown in Fig. 1 comprises a cylindrical casing 5 having an inlet water supply connection 6 and a discharge outlet 7 leading preferably, in the present instance, to a conventional water closet as shown in Fig. 5. Within the casing 5 there is a piston 8 carrying at its upper portion a rubber cup member or. packing 9 slidable within the cover 10, which cover is screwed into the top of the valve body 5. The lower end of the piston 8 rests on the main valve seat 11 in the body when the valve is in the closed position as shown. The piston cup rubber 9 divides the interior of the valve body 5 into a lower inlet chamber 12, subject to the line pressure from inlet 6, and an upper pressure chamber 13, the two chambers being inter-connected through a small passage 14and a small by-pass opening 15 in the plug 17 controlled by the by-pass valve member 16; When the valve is in the open position, the by-pass valve 16 seats upward against plug 17, so that only the small by-pass 15 is effective as shown in Fig. 6, whereas when the by-pass valve 16 engages the adjusting screw 18, it opens a larger passage around its stem to the upper pressure chamber 13 to clean out the by-pass opening 15.

The piston 8 carries auxiliary or relief valve 20 controlling a large passage through the piston between the chamber 13 and outlet 7. It has a depending stem 21 which is adapted to telescope within the upper portion of the auxiliary valve under certain conditions as will be pointed out. The auxiliary valve 20 seats upon seat 22 arranged in the lower portion of the piston 8, which portion also forms the guiding head 23 of the piston within the body 5. A series of pins 24 extend upward from the seat 22 through the top of the auxiliary valve 20 for the purpose of pivoting the valve when it is tilted and for preventing lateral shifting of the same. The U-shaped bar 19 is for the purpose of forcing the auxiliary valve 20 down upon its seat when the piston reaches its upper limit of travel. The foregoing parts are all generally well known and need not further be described in detail.

The auxiliary valve 20 is actuated or tilted by moving its stem 21 laterally and is accomplished by the manually operated means embodying the invention. This includes the horizontal operating plunger 25 forming part of the operating rod 26. Rod 26 is guided by and extends through an opening in the attaching nut 27 threaded onto an opening in the valve body 5 and holds all the handle operating parts in position on the valve body. 1

diaphragm 29 by the clamping nut 30, while the periphery of the diaphragm is securely clamped in sealing engagement against the cup-shaped bushing 31 by the attaching nut 27. The plunger 25 extends through the bottom of bushing 31 and is guided thereby in its reciprocating movements, the extent of the inward movement being limited by the nut 30 engaging the bottom portion 36 of bushing 31 while the outward movement is limited by the diaphragm 29 engaging the under side of attaching nut 27.

In each direction of movement, the diaphragm 29 is stretched or flexed and the inherent resiliency stored therein is sufiicient torestore the rod 26 and plunger 25 to their normal positions after the button 28 is released. Reinforcing metal inserts are preferably inserted around both the axis and periphery of the diaphragm 29 and to assist in preventing leakage of water from the interior of the flush valve outward through the opening in the attaching nut 27 through which the rod 26 extends. The diaphragm 29 therefore serves both as a seal against leakage and as a restoring medium for the manual operating mechanism and button 28, thereby dispensing with a restoring spring. A small hole 37 in the bottom of bushing 31 permits water to be expelled from the bushing when the diaphragm 29 is flexed in the inward direction.

The inward end of the operating plunger 25 is arranged with means for contacting and actuating the auxiliary valve stem 21. This means comprises depending U-shaped member 33 having a relatively short leg 34 and a slightly longer leg 35 between which legs the lower depending end of stem 21 is normally positioned, as shown in Fig. l. The long leg 35 is fastenedto the end of plunger 25 by a screw 38 preferably in a manner so that the U-shaped member 33 is freely pivoted thereon and always hangs downward regardless of the assembled position of the button operating parts.

In the operation of the invention, assume that a person who has used the water closet, Fig. 5, desires that a regular full flushing action take place in the same. The button 28 is accordingly pushed inward toward the valve from the position shown in Fig. 1, causing the plunger rod 26 and operating plunger 25 to be projected inward until the nut 30 is stopped by engagement with the bottom side 36 of bushing 31. This action also results in the inward fiexure of diaphragm 29, as well as the contacting of the long leg 35 of member 33 with the auxiliary valve stem 21, causing tilting of the auxiliary valve 20, opening it from its seat 22. The parts have now assumed the position as illustrated in Fig. 2. Tilting of the auxiliary valve 20 permits the upper chamber 13 of the flush valve to be exhausted into the discharge outlet 7, and as a result, the water pressure from the inlet 6 is effective to raise the piston 8 from the main valve seat 11 and permit full flow of water to the discharge outlet 7 into the fixture. As the piston 8 rises, it carries along the auxiliary valve 20, and as a result, stem 21 slides upward along the side of the long leg 35 until it comes to rest upon the top of the leg. Due to the telescopic action of the stem 21, the auxiliary valve is then permitted to close upon its seat 22 again and allow the flush valve to close. This action will take place even though the push button 28 is held in longer than necessary. Water now passes upwardly through the opening 14 and small by-pass opening 15 against which the head of by-pass valve 16 is now positioned by the water flow, as shown in Fig. 6, and enters the pressure chamber 13, so the pressure will equalize on both sides of the piston 8 and the piston descend, closing upon the main valve seat 23. This closing action is a result of the pressure area on the upper side of the piston being larger than that on the lower side and at the valve seat.

To further explain the above operation, when the auxiliary valve 20 is tilted and the pressure in chamber 13 relieved, the piston 8 is rapidly moved upward from its seat 11 by the water pressure. At the top of the stroke the auxiliary valve is closed upon its seat 22 by sliding over the end of the leg 35 and pressure again builds up in chamber 13. However, near the end of the upstroke of the piston, pin 16 will strike the end of adjusting screw 18 and remain in contact with it a short time as the piston moves downward and until the head of pin 16 seats on the bottom of plug 17, being forced thereagainst by the water pressure, as shown in Fig. 6. When this occurs, only the small by-pass opening 15 will be effective to pass water into the pressure chamber 13, and the piston then begins its slow metering downward movement to its seat 11. The extent to which the adjusting screw 18 projects downward to engage pin 16 therefore determines when the slow-closing timing action of the piston begins. The adjusting screw 18 and the pin 16 therefore cooperate to initially predetermine the maximum flushing action of the valve, as well as provide a cleaning and flushing action through the by-pass 15 at each operation. The adjusting screw 18 enables a further fine adjustment to be made of the amount of flush roughly determined when the auxiliary valve stem 21 slides against the leg 35.

When the manual pressure on button 28 is released, diaphragm 29 is effective to restore the rod 26 and plunger 25 to normal, as well as the U-shaped member 33, the end of stem 21 consequently dropping off long leg 35 to the position shown in Fig. 1 with all the parts again in normal position.

When it is desired to flush the water closet with only a small quantity of water in order to economize on the same, or for other reasons, the button 28 is grasped by the user and pulled outward. This action results in lateral shifting of the short leg 34 to the left of Fig. 1 and causes the auxiliary valve stem 21 to ride against the side of the short leg and then rest on top of it. The auxiliary valve 20 is thereby tilted in the opposite direction from that shown in Fig. 2, and since the leg 34 is shorter than leg 35, the auxiliary valve will close much sooner upon its seat 22, resulting in a quicker closing of the main piston valve 8 and a smaller quantity of water being discharged through the outlet 7.

From the foregoing, it will 'be seen that the longer the auxiliary valve is held open, as by leg 35, the greater will be the distance of the upward travel of the main valve from its seat 11 and the greater will be the quantity of water passing through the valve. When the short leg 34, however, contacts the auxiliary valve stem, a smaller amount of water will be passed by the valve. The standard syphon-jet type of water closet requires approximately 4 /2 gallons of water to flush it properly when used for flushing solid waste matter, as in the usual manner. For flushing out liquids or after urinating, a short flush of only about two gallons is necessary and the average water closet 51 will ordinarily provide a regular syphonic action, clean out, and refill when only about two gallons of water are discharged into it, together with the liquid wastes dumped into the closet. For regulating the fiow rate, as for different pressures, a control stop 50, shown in Fig. 5, is usually connected to the flush valve, while the adjusting screw 18 on the flush valve cover 10 provides a further fine adjustment of the volume of water discharged by the flush valve.

It is apparent that considerable savings may be made in the amount of water consumed when the flush valve is operated as described. A standard flush valve such as shown is readily converted to function according to the invention by merely removing the old handle operating mechanism and coupling nut and substituting the push button operating mechanism shown in Fig. 1, no other changes being necessary.

The modification shown in Fig. 4 uses a handle instead of the push button 28 of Fig. 1. The handle 40 has a flange portion 41 pivoted at 42 in the top side of coupling nut 27, together with a rib 43 formed in the coupling nut opening which serves as a guide in a slot on the flange 41 to prevent horizontal shifting of the handle 40. The inward end of the handle 40 is provided with a pin 44 sliding in slot 45 in the member 46 attached to the axis of diaphragm 29 and rod 25 by not 30. Lifting handle 40 upward as indicated at 47 about pivot pin 42 causes pin 44 to pull the diaphragm 29 outward and plunger 25 to the left. This results in the short leg 34 of the U-shaped member 33 engaging auxiliary stem 21 to provide a short flush. When a long flush is desired, the handle 40 is pushed downward as indicated at 48 about pivot 44, thereby flexing diaphragm 29 inward with the result that the long leg 35 engages stem 21. In either case, the inherent resiliency in the diaphragm serves to restore the parts to normal and maintain them in the position shown.

It is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the precise details of construction, combination and arrangement of the various parts and elements as herein illustrated and described, other than as may be required by the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A flush valve comprising a casing provided with a water supply inlet and a discharge outlet, a main valve dividing said casing into an upper and lower chamber and having a passageway connecting said upper chamber with said discharge outlet, an auxiliary valve carried by said main valve for controlling said passageway, the opening and closing of said auxiliary valve causing said main valve to hydraulically operate and discharge a quantity of water through said outlet and then to close, a depending stem on said auxiliary valve, an operating member arranged in proximity to the end of said stern, manually operated means for selectively actuating said operating member in either of two directions, a U-shaped member on the end of said operating member having a relatively short leg and a long leg, said auxiliary valve stem being normally positioned between said legs, the actuation of said operating member in one direction adapted to engage the long leg with said stem and in the other direction the short leg with said stem, whereby said auxiliary valve is opened and held open for a predetermined length of time depending on which leg is engaging said stem, to cause said main valve to discharge either of two different quantities of water.

2. A flush valve comprising a casing provided with a water supply inlet and a discharge outlet, a main valve dividing said casing into an upper and lower chamber and having a passageway connecting said upper chamber with said discharge outlet, a tiltable auxiliary valve carried by said main valve for controlling said passageway, the tilting and consequent opening of said auxiliary valve causing said main valve to hydraulically operate and discharge a quantity of water through said outlet and then to close, a depending stem on said auxiliary valve, an operating member arranged in proximity to the end of said stern, manually operated means for selectively actuating said operating member in either of two directions, means on said operating member adapted to engage said stem to tilt said auxiliary valve in different directions to open and hold it open for different predetermined lengths of time to cause said main valve to discharge different quantities of water, depending upon which direction said operating member is actuated and said auxiliary valve is tilted, said last means comprising a U-shaped member having a long leg freely pivoted to the end of said operating member on one side of said depending stem, and a short leg arranged on the opposite side of said depending stem, the pivoted support of said U-shaped member enabling it to always hang in a downward position unaffected by water flow, and means on said operating member for restoring the same to normal position from either of its actuated positions.

3. In an operating arrangement for a flush valve includ ing an auxiliary valve having an operating stem adapted to be operated selectively to cause the flush valve to provide different quantities of water, a single operating member having a manually operated handle on one end for actuating said operating member in either of two directions, means on the other end of said operating member arranged to variably actuate said auxiliary valve stem for causing the operation of said auxiliary valve in diiferent directions depending on the direction of movement of said operating member, a resilient member on said operating member serving to restore it to normal position after an operation in either direction, and single means for supporting, for guiding and for limiting the movement of said operating member in said two directions.

4. In an operating arrangement for a flush valve including an auxiliary valve having an operating stem adapted to be operated selectively to cause the flush valve to discharge different quantities of water, a single operating member having a manually actuated handle on one end for actuating said operating member in either of two directions of movement, means on the other end of said operating member to variably actuate said auxiliary valve stem for causing the operation of said auxiliary valve in different directions depending on the direction of movement of said operating member, a resilient diaphragm clamped at its center to said operating member, supporting means for clamping the periphery of said resilient diaphragm in position, said supporting means also guiding the movements of said operating member and limiting the extent of movement thereof in said two directions, said resilient diaphragm serving to restore said operating member after each operation thereof and to prevent leakage of water from the interior of said operating arrangement outward through said supporting means.

5. In an operating arrangement for a flush valve including an auxiliary valve having an operating stem adapted to be operated selectively to cause the flush valve to discharge different quantities of water, an operating member having a manually actuated handle on one end for actuating said operating member in either of two directions of movement, a U-shaped member on the other end of said operating member having a short leg and a long leg arranged on opposite sides of said auxiliary valve stem, the movement of said short leg in one direction by said operating member causing said short leg to contact one side of said auxiliary valve stem to move it in one of said directions while the movement of said long leg in the other direction causing said long leg to contact the other side of said auxiliary valve stem to move it in the other of said directions, resilient means secured to said operating member for holding the same in a normal position and for restoring the operating member when actuated in either direction, and suporting means for said resilient means also guiding and limiting the movements of said operating member in said two directions.

6. A flush valve comprising a casing having a water supply inlet and a discharge outlet, a main valve dividing the casing into an upper and a lower chamber, said main valve having a passageway therethrough connecting the upper chamber with said discharge outlet, an auxiliary valve carried upon said main valve and normally closing said passageway, the opening of said auxiliary valve causing said main valve to hydraulically operate and discharge a quantity of water through said outlet and then to close, a depending stem on said auxiliary valve having a telescoping section thereon, a manually operated plunger for contacting said stem at a certain point on its length to open said auxiliary valve, said auxiliary valve stem sliding along the end of said plunger and then on top thereof as said main valve carries the auxiliary valve along with it, said auxiliary valve closing said passageway as said stem telescopes on top of said plunger, the extent of the sliding action of said stern on said plunger determining the length of time said auxiliary valve is held open and therefore the amount of water said main valve discharges, means on said manually operated plunger for contacting said auxiliary valve stem on one side thereof and a certain point on its length to cause said main valve to discharge a certain quantity of water, and other means on said manually operated plunger for contacting said auxiliary valve stem on another side thereof and at a different point on its length to cause said main valve to discharge a different quantity of water.

7. In an operating arrangement for a flush valve including an auxiliary valve having an operating stem in which the flush valve is controlled in a selective manner by said auxiliary valve to provide different quantities of water, an operating member having a manually operated handle on one end for selectively and laterally pushing said operating member inward or pulling it outward, a U- shaped member having legs of unequal length on the other end of said operating member, the operating stem of said auxiliary valve being normally positioned between the legs of said U-shaped member, whereby when the handle is pushed inward one leg of the U-shaped member contacts one side of said operating stem to cause the auxiliary valve to operate in one manner, and when the handle is pulled outward the other leg of the U-shaped member contacts the other side of the operating stem to cause the auxiliary valve to operate in a diflerent manner, and means for restoring said operating member each time after 10 it has been operated by said handle.

ReferencesiCited ini the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

